The jogger, 36-year-old Kelly Herron, talked with ABC News and told them how a day of jogging turned into a nightmare. On Sunday, Herron was four miles into her 10-mile run at Golden Garden parks when she had to use the public restroom.
As Herron was drying her hands, she said she turned around after getting the feeling something wasn’t right. That’s when she spotted 40-year-old Gary Steiner standing there. At that point, Steiner assaulted her.
Steiner, who is a registered sex-offender, punched Herron over a dozen times and wrestled her to the ground. He also pulled her pants down. Police say he was hiding inside one of the stalls before he launched the viscous assault.
Herron said she was shouting at Steiner and telling him “not today” and that she was being loud and was acting like she was not afraid. She said by doing this, she was letting him know that he was not going to get the better of her.
The sex-offender wasn’t discouraged and he continued to fight with her on the bathroom floor. Eventually Herron pulled herself through the front of the stall because its door was stuck. Before getting a surge of adrenaline, she was on the verge of passing out. She managed to reach for the door and make an escape.
Herron said she learnt self-defense techniques a few weeks prior to the incident. She credits that with saving her life. The jogger said she learnt that you pout hard bones in soft fleshy places, so she struck the side of Steiner’s head with the side of her hand.
She took to Instagram to share the aftermath of the attack. Her photos reveal the struggle she had faced. In the Instagram post, she said she felt empowered.
As for Steiner, police arrived at the scene and placed him under arrest. They didn’t have to look too hard for him because Herron locked him in the bathroom. He is now facing a number of charges.
